Stage Kiss
by NaijaChiqa
Summary: AnnaRyan.... interpretation of The Goodbye Girl.


I own nothing.  
  
Contains dialogue from The Goodbye Girl.  
  
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"Came to say goodbye to Seth?" you ask sincerely.  
  
I'd never known I could be an actress till I moved to Newport. The lifestyle, the people, the attitudes were all foreign to me, but I had managed to make it look like they didn't phase me. In fact, I was so good at putting up a front that I even pretended to enjoy everything I hated about the place.  
  
"Yeah..." I say reluctantly. What else can I say? That I came to see you? I can't explain how it happened but it was too late before I realized that I was dating the wrong friend. I'd spent so much energy trying to compete with the other girl for his affections that I couldn't see what was standing in front of me the whole time. Do you know how many times I replayed the conversation we shared at the fair in my mind? If only I'd listened to you and put a stop to it, I might very well have been laying in your arms at this very moment.  
  
What did you ever see in Marissa? I don't have anything against her -I'm sure she's nice- but she's not right for you. You and I are outsiders - we understand one another and see things differently. You need a strong woman that can love and support you when you need it most, not one that keeps you up worrying half the night. You need a woman that can appreciate all you've been through and help ease your pain, not one that only intensifies it. You need a woman that can help stimulate your mind, not one that has nothing to say when you don't have your tongue down her throat. You need me Ryan, why can't you see that?  
  
Can I tell you how my heart sang when I found out that Marissa broke up with you? Even though I knew it was for the best, I wanted to help ease the pain I knew you were undoubtedly in. So I tried to find a way to break things off with Seth because I had let that go on for much longer than it needed to be. I was so pleased to see that his infatuation with Summer had never ended so I played the embittered ex, knowing that soon after, I would get the chance to be you.  
  
Then Marissa had to fuck everything up with her theatrics. Why? Why couldn't she just leave you alone? Why did she have to create so much drama and make you so obsessed with saving her that you never even got the chance to notice me? The real me. Why?  
  
I pull out an envelope.  
  
"Could you give him this letter?" I ask you. You nod and take it from me, your fingers briefly brushing against mine, sending a slight shiver through me. Being in a public place is the only thing that kept me from jumping your bones at that very moment. Do you know how I've longed to taste you?  
  
My eyes follow yours and see Seth posing for pictures with his grandfather. I know what you think and play along.  
  
"It was supposed to say everything I couldn't say but now that I'm here, I just can't say anything at all," I continue. I can't say that I wish I'd known you first or that I wish I'd never been so competitive or that I hadn't been stupid to think that sharing interests with someone made him the perfect mate. I can't say that I wish we were at your pool house screwing our brains out. No, I can't say that.  
  
I see Theresa glance at you and know that I have to leave. Seeing you fawn over one girl was so bad that two was more than my heart could handle. It was beginning to seem like you loved every girl but me.  
  
"See you Ryan," I say, getting ready for another performance.   
  
"Thanks for teaching me how to waltz," you say as we share an embrace. You smell as good as hot chocolate on a cold, rainy night and I don't want to let you go.   
  
"You have the best life," I say looking into your startling blue eyes, "you deserve it." I flinch because I realize I almost tagged 'with me' to the end of that sentence.   
  
I sit at the airport hoping and wishing that Seth didn't wait too long to open that letter - I am far more confident on paper. I sit hoping that the second he hands it to you, you get into your car and chase after me. Truly, this love cannot be unrequited, can it? Is it possible to feel you can lay your life for someone who doesn't feel the same? Ryan, I do sometimes catch the thoughtful glances you send my way. They must mean you feel something, right?  
  
I sit waiting, remembering the curves of your face and that way your eyes crinkle at the rare moments you smile, but you don't show up.   
  
I accept defeat and go through security.  
  
"Anna." Seth's voice is as welcome as a glass of cold water in the Sahara. Could it mean that you got the letter?  
  
I look up and see him waving at me. I look behind him, wishing you there but all I see are nameless, faceless people. I go to him, hoping there's some news from you but am disappointed that he only came because he still thinks it's all about him. He shows me the smeared letter and I know that you'll never know how I truly feel. Just my luck. I brace myself for my final performance. I tell him all the things he wants to hear, regretting for what I know isn't the last time, that I allowed myself to kiss the wrong boy. 


End file.
